Making Your Podcast Rock: Do’s and Don’ts to Keep in Mind

Nowadays, a podcast is considered an innovative and highly effective digital marketing tool that can be used to promote brands, establish authority, and reach a captive audience.

Contrary to common belief, running a podcast is not that straightforward. If truth be told, there are plenty of things you need into account to deliver a podcast that’s truly phenomenal.

If you want to deliver a podcast that truly rocks, start by keeping the following podcasting essentials in mind:

DO’S

• Target a niche that is specific

Unlike the blogosphere, the podcast landscape is not that crowded as of yet. Make no mistake about it though, competition is still as fierce as can be. That means if you search for general topics, your search will yield hundreds of results.

The good news is there’s plenty of potential for growth if you target niche areas. In other words, rather than competing with a gazillion general podcasts, find a specific niche that you are really passionate about and take it from there.

• Observe a specific routine

Successful podcasts often share one thing in common—they adhere to a set routine. The routine you follow does not have to be uber specific. The main idea is to ensure you are able to deliver what your listeners expect when they tune in.

For instance, the podcast Stuff You Should Know starts with a brief chat before covering the main topic. The show then ends with reader mail. Entrepreneur on Fire, another wildly successful podcast also follows a specific routine. Both podcasts have experienced massive success partly because they utilize this winning formula.

• Edit accordingly
  

If the primary goal of your podcast is to market your brand, consider it ideal to not do live broadcasts. Instead, opt for a recorded session so you can edit out factual inaccuracies, long pauses, awkward moments, and other mistakes. If editing is not something you are familiar with or if it’s something you just can’t fit into your schedule, investing in the services of a seasoned podcast editor is your best option.

DON’TS

• Be too rigid

While following a routine is crucial, you still need to be mindful you don’t go overboard. Otherwise, you can end up destroying the natural feel of the show. In line with this, don’t shy away from spending a few minutes discussing an interesting, intriguing, or awesome idea when it comes up. Just make sure you steer the conversation back to the primary topic after a few minutes. As a general rule of thumb, employ a conversational approach but still adhere to the structure your listeners are used to.

• Use too much jargon

Even if you have targeted a specific audience, it is still recommended that you assume your listeners are not extensively knowledgeable about the topics you are covering. With that in mind, avoid using terms they might not be familiar with. In addition, it would also be wise to avoid giving blanket statements just to prove your point.

• Wait for subscribers and listeners

Even if you have a rocking podcast, it does not always follow people will magically find you. You still need to exert effort to build a decent and loyal following. Fortunately, in today’s highly connected world, you have a lot of platforms available at your disposal. For starters, there’s blogging, guest blogging, and social media channels you can use to get word out.

Podcasting has now become a force to be reckoned with. Those who want to build brand awareness or those who want to be seen as authorities in their field now use podcasting as the ideal venue to achieve said objectives. Given that you observe the podcasting basics above, you can look forward to growing your fan and subscriber base and delivering a podcast that’s truly rocks!

Did we miss out anything important? What podcasting basics do you swear by? Let us now in the comments section below!

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